Emily Roux joins judging panel
We are delighted to welcome Emily Roux as a judge starting from the 2024 competition.
As an experienced chef herself, Emily brings her years of training in France and experience of running her own restaurant Caractère to the judging panel. After judging the recipe applications in early February alongside her fellow judges, she will then judge the regional finalists the London Regional Final and the National Final at The Waterside Inn’s new Culinary School.
She said: “I am super excited to be joining the panel of judges. Being alongside some incredible chefs and previous winner’s is a real honour. The Roux Scholarship is a real trampoline for any young chef’s career.”
Despite having been born into the Roux culinary dynasty, Emily decided to train as a chef in France in order to find her own feet in the kitchen. Having grown up in London, her training began in 2010 where she worked in the kitchens of the Michelin starred La Table du Lancaster in Paris. She then moved to Monaco to work in the kitchens of two of Alain Ducasse’s restaurants; first La Trattoria, which gave her a deep appreciation for Italian food in both everyday cooking and in fine dining restaurants. She then went to work at Le Louis XV*** at the Hotel de Paris, where her stage allowed her to perfect the art of patisserie, therefore following in her grandfather and father’s footsteps. After her nine-month stage, Emily then moved back to Paris where she stayed until August 2015. She was Demi-Chef de Partie at Le 39V* for 10 months, and then became Junior Sous-Chef at Akrame**.
On her move back to London, Emily began working with Restaurant Associates, as well as collaborating with her father Michel at Le Gavroche on a series of monthly events. Emily also continued to hone her skills in the kitchens of Chez Roux, working with Michel and Albert to ensure the extraordinary standard of cooking was delivered in the restaurants at Newmarket and Cheltenham Racecourses, as well as Chez Roux at Blue Riband, Epsom Derby and The Gatsby Club at Wimbledon.
In September 2017, Emily’s first recipe book, New French Table, written in conjunction with her mother Giselle Roux was published. The book sees the mother-and-daughter team share a fresh take on classic and contemporary French gastronomy, creating a modern bible for today’s lifestyle.
In October 2018, Emily opened her first restaurant with husband Diego Ferrari, Caractère. Based in Notting Hill, the restaurant encompasses what both Emily and Diego hold dearest – beautiful food, warm surroundings, expert and friendly service – all delivered with real character. Combining their love of classic French and Italian food, the menu is an expression of their culinary backgrounds and includes dishes that have been elevated from the dishes they love to cook for each other at home.
In October 2022, Emily and Diego hosted the round table discussion about Women Chefs and the Roux Scholarship, which resulted in a White Paper (read it here) about women chefs’ experience in the industry and how restaurants can support their female chefs to succeed in The Roux Scholarship.
